Darden Restaurants Joins Healthy Dining Program to Offer Guests 'Dietitian-Approved' Menu Options

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Aug 03, 2010, 09:00 ET

ORLANDO, Fla., Aug. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As part of its ongoing commitment to transparency and choice in helping guests meet their individual nutritional goals, Darden Restaurants announced today that it has joined Healthy Dining and the online resource HealthyDiningFinder.com.

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The owner of Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52, Darden is dedicated to providing its guests with the information they need to help meet their personal health and wellness goals when dining out through Healthy Dining's selection of "dietitian-approved" menu choices.

All six of Darden's restaurant concepts are members of Healthy Dining, and guests at any Darden restaurant across North America can find a variety of Healthy Dining-approved dishes, including:

Red Lobster's Steamed Live Maine Lobster – Served with garden salad (140 calories, 3g total fat, .5g sat fat, 1.75 servings fruits/veg)
Olive Garden's Venetian Apricot Chicken (Dinner Portion) – grilled chicken breast in an apricot citrus sauce and served with broccoli, asparagus, and diced tomatoes (380 calories, 4g total fat, 1.5g sat fat, 1.5 servings fruits/veg)
LongHorn Steakhouse's Citrus Grilled Chicken – topped with fresh oranges and tangy citrus glaze (520 calories, 18g total fat, 5 g sat fat, .5 serving fruits/veg)
The Capital Grille's Sesame Seared Tuna with Gingered Rice (610 calories, 21g fat, 2g sat fat)
Seasons 52's Lemongrass Salmon Salad –with organic field lettuce, grilled pineapple, jicama and toasted sesame dressing (460 calories, 23g total fat, 5g sat fat, 1.75 servings fruits/veg)
Bahama Breeze's Crab, Shrimp, Mango & Avocado Stack - jumbo lump crabmeat, chilled shrimp, fresh avocados and apple-mango salsa layered and stacked; with a spicy honey-red pepper drizzle (320 calories, 8g total fat, 1g sat fat, .75 serving fruits/veg)

"Our menus provide a wide variety of choices that appeal to a broad range of taste preferences and dietary needs," said John Caron, Chief Marketing Officer for Darden. "Those include dietitian-approved Healthy Dining menu choices, giving our guests even more ways to meet their individual nutritional goals."

With 1,800 locations across North America serving 400 million meals each year, Darden's partnership with Healthy Dining is providing easily accessible information to millions of guests.

"We are excited to welcome Darden's entire family of restaurants to the Healthy Dining Program," said Anita Jones-Mueller, Founder/President of Healthy Dining. "Visitors to HealthyDiningFinder.com are sure to delight in discovering the many great-tasting options offered by each of Darden's restaurants that meet Healthy Dining's nutrition criteria."

Today's announcement comes on the heels of Darden's recent announcement that it is the first restaurant company to join the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation, a coalition of more than 80 retailers, food and beverage manufacturers and non-governmental organizations committed to helping people achieve a healthy weight.

Launched in collaboration with the National Restaurant Association and developed with partial funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HealthyDiningFinder.com is the go-to-guide for health-conscious consumers who love to eat out. This free resource takes the guesswork out of identifying healthful choices on restaurant menus, enabling consumers to search by restaurant name, location, price range, take-out availability, and more. Nutrition information (including calories, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, fiber, sugars, protein and fruit/vegetable cups) for each featured menu item is provided on the website.

In addition to the nutritional information for specific items available on HealthyDiningFinder.com for each of Darden's brands, nutritional information for all menu items is available on the brands' individual websites.

About Darden Restaurants:

Darden Restaurants, Inc., (NYSE: DRI) headquartered in Orlando, Fla., is the world's largest company-owned and operated full-service restaurant company with more than $7 billion in annual sales and approximately 180,000 employees. Darden is recognized for a culture that rewards caring for and responding to people. Our restaurant brands – Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52 – reflect the rich diversity of those who dine with us. Our brands are built on deep insights into what our guests want.

About Healthy Dining:

Since 1990, Healthy Dining's culinary nutrition experts have been guiding and inspiring chefs and restaurateurs to create and serve a selection of healthier dishes that emphasize lean protein, fruits and vegetables, and whole grains. A leader in restaurant nutrition, the company has worked with hundreds of restaurants and analyzed more than 15,000 menu items for nutrient content. In addition to developing HealthyDiningFinder.com, Healthy Dining has published 19 editions of its trendsetting Healthy Dining guides (Healthy Dining in San Diego, Healthy Dining in Orange County and Healthy Dining in Los Angeles), which feature healthier menu items and corresponding nutrition information (including calories, fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, fiber and protein). For more information, please visit www.HealthyDiningFinder.com or call 800-953-DINE.

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SOURCE Darden Restaurants, Inc.: General